Action Stimulates Inspiration

Progress. Critics. Community. Long-term goals. Action inspires.

‘Once you desire progress more than convenience, obstacles no longer stop but propel you.’

Benjamin P. Hardy • Inc

The truth about obstacles, setbacks, inconveniences, and whatever comes between you and your goals, is how they will immediately expose the doubts you might have about what you’re doing, and how you’re approaching it. Your commitment will be put to the test.

However, if your desire to advance is great enough, you’ll realize the inconveniences are mostly temporary and are part of what make you better. You should embrace trying moments when they come because you are going to learn and grow as a result. You build up perseverance. Psychologically, you’re more likely to overcome obstacles and gain momentum.

‘You’re better off ignoring unhelpful critics because you’ll learn a lot more — a lot faster — if you just keep on doing the work.’

Tanner Christensen • freeCodeCamp

If you’re in any creative field, there are varying degrees of criticism that can be expected over the course of your career—the useful and the not so useful. However, just because you’re expecting it doesn’t mean you always have to accept it. For example, ‘This is not your best work’, or ‘Try harder next time’ alone isn’t useful, and if the critique is purely subjective without tangible advice, just ignore it. Sometimes the fear or concern of others’ opinions can force you to learn and produce better work, but stress is bad for your creativity so always recognize the unhelpful criticism when you see it.

Criticism is inevitable when there are creative differences, but it should always be delivered with reasoning and constructive feedback. Just remember that criticism can derive from hate or jealousy just as much as love and care, but can even manifest purely on the notion that one is compelled to fabricate a point for the sake of contribution.

Whatever the criticism, it should never be taken too personally—especially when it doesn’t have any bearing on a project’s goals. As long as you believe in what you’re doing and you can learn something regardless of the outcome, that’s all that matters. Sometimes you just need to ignore the unhelpful responses and keep going, learning the consequences of your actions on your own.

‘Find your community of people, and if it doesn’t exist, then build it. Invite people into it and expand it.’

Zach Lieberman • The Great Discontent

In order to grow, you need to find your community. Whether it’s a target audience for your product, or a group that you can learn from, you have to find it and become a part of it; people that you can share connections or inspiration with. In whatever creative field you operate in, you won’t be able to go as far without one—and if it doesn’t exist, create it.

Finding the right community can propel you, inspire you, and help grow your business. Without an audience, your talent may be useless—but maybe an audience will find you first and you have to be cognizant of when that happens. Only your community will know how to deal with the same potential problems or issues that you’re dealing with. Learn from their processes or mistakes, and your career will go further.

‘Successful people set long-term goals, and they know these aims are merely the result of short-term habits that they need to do every day.’

Zdravko Cvijetic • Medium

Don’t get hung up on trying to achieve overnight success. Successful people have long-term goals, and they don’t expect those goals to be instantaneous or accomplished with just a little bit of effort. The smartest approach is to make a series of easier, short-term habits that when consistently made can get you closer to your ultimate goal.

Whether it’s finding a little bit of time each day to learn about something specific, or getting up a little earlier to work on your dream project, it’s only a matter of time before that goal is reached. It helps to keep the big picture in the back of your mind as a motivator, but focus on one day at a time, and chip away at those small goals.

‘Action stimulates inspiration more often than inspiration stimulates action.’

Zat Rana • Medium

Just because you’re inspired by something, doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll do anything with it. It can take the right circumstances and attitude to cause any form of action. Inspiration can occur frequently; at any time and in any form, but it doesn’t always stimulate action. When you get started and are in the process of “doing”, it can encourage momentum and energize you more greatly than just simply observation. Your engagement in the process can inspire you to learn, to improve, and to finish.

Sometimes, it’s better to avoid watching what others do, and just do what you need to do—you can create your own inspiration.

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